Queen – Sheer Heart Attack (1974)

“Yeah, there’s Queen and Queen II, and they’re both terrific, but on Sheer Heart Attack there was a huge leap with the production, songwriting and particularly the guitar playing. Brian May is one of the reasons why I play guitar. Brighton Rock – the crazy descending licks in that song are amazing.

“Brian May was always a sick guitarist, but here he really honed his sound. You have everything from really nasty hard rock shredding to very beautiful, singable guitar lines, which basically gave birth to A Night At The Opera.

“Brian May's sound is so recognizable – from a mile away, you know it's him. He has a few things that are uniquely him: He built his own guitar, he plays with a British sixpence – stuff like that. There’s a certain little twinge to the way he picks a note – it makes a chirping sound. On Sheer Heart Attack, everything he does, you go, ‘Oh, that’s Brian May.’”